Gaming machine with bonus feature

ABSTRACT

A gaming machine has a display and a game controller arranged to control images of symbols displayed on the display. The game controller is arranged to play a game wherein at least one random event is caused to be displayed on the display. If a predefined winning event occurs, the machine awards a prize. The game includes a bonus feature which, when triggered, results in the display of a plurality of devices, each of which animates to reveal a number, a prize awarded being a product of the numbers displayed by the devices.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] This invention relates to a gaming machine. More particularly,the invention relates to a gaming machine and to an improvement to agame played on such a gaming machine.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

[0002] Players who regularly play gaming machines quickly tire ofparticular games and therefore it is necessary for manufacturers ofthese machines to develop innovative game features which add interest tothe games. In so doing, it is hoped to keep players amused and thereforewilling to continue playing the game as well as to attract new players.

[0003] Also, with the growth that has occurred in the gaming machinemarket, there is intense competition between manufacturers to supplyvarious existing and new venues. When selecting a supplier of gamingmachines, the operator of a venue will often pay close attention to thepopularity of various games with their patrons. Therefore, gamingmachine manufacturers are keen to devise games and/or game featureswhich are popular with the players as a mechanism for improving sales,retaining customers and attracting new customers.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0004] According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided agaming machine having a display means and a game control means arrangedto control images of symbols displayed on the display means, the gamecontrol means being arranged to play a game wherein at least one randomevent is caused to be displayed on the display means and, if apredefined winning event occurs, the machine awards a prize, wherein thegame includes a bonus feature which, when triggered, results in thedisplay of a plurality of devices, each of which animates to reveal anumber, a prize awarded being a product of the numbers displayed by thedevices.

[0005] Preferably, the gaming machine includes a composite, bonusingfeature. The composite, bonusing feature comprises a plurality of bonusfeatures. The bonus features are independent of each other and of thebase game. The bonus feature of the present invention may form part ofthe composite, bonusing feature but it is to be understood that thebonus feature of the present invention need not necessarily be usedexclusively as a part of a composite, bonusing feature. For ease ofreference the composite, bonusing feature will be referred to as a“composite feature”.

[0006] The composite feature and, hence, the opportunity to participatein the bonus feature of the present invention, may be automaticallytriggered. Instead, a player may have to wager an additional amount,over and above a standard game wager, to be eligible for the compositefeature and, as a result, the bonus feature of the present invention.

[0007] The composite feature may be triggered independently of the basegame. If the composite feature applies, the control means may make arandom determination as to whether or not the composite feature is to betriggered.

[0008] Should the composite feature be triggered, the control means maymake a further random determination as to which bonus feature of thecomposite feature is to be played.

[0009] In the case of the bonus feature of the present invention, ifthis bonus feature is triggered by the control means then, when thebonus feature is triggered, the base game may be replaced by a secondscreen display.

[0010] When the bonus feature is triggered, a character, called “LuckyDevil” ™ (Lucky Devil is a trade mark of the Applicant), which may becommon to all of the bonus features of the composite feature, may appearin the second screen display.

[0011] The devices of the bonus feature may be dice and the charactermay animate to perform a routine simulating the shaking of a pluralityof dice, for example, three dice, in the character's hand followed by asimulation of throwing of the dice.

[0012] Preferably, to create a heightened sense of anticipation, thedice are thrown one after the other. Each die may, in the second screendisplay, animate to roll across a scene of the display to come to restat a front of the scene with one face of the die visible.

[0013] The prize awarded may be the product of the numbers on thevisible faces of the dice. In the case where the feature comprises threedice, if the numbers on the visible faces of at least two of the diceare the same, the prize awarded may be multiplied by a predeterminedfirst multiple, for example, a multiple of five. If the numbers on thevisible faces of all three of the dice are the same, the prize awardedmay be multiplied by a second multiple greater than the first multiple,for example, a multiple of ten. In addition, the prize awarded may bemultiplied by a number of lines bet and a bet per line.

[0014] According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provideda game to be played on a game playing apparatus, the game playingapparatus having a display means and a game control means arranged tocontrol images displayed on the display means, the game including abonus feature which, when triggered, results in the display of aplurality of devices, each of which animates to reveal a number, a prizeawarded being a product of the numbers displayed by the devices.

[0015] A game playing apparatus includes one which does not require thewagering of a stake in order to play the game and further includesapparatus which is connectable to a network.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] The invention is now described by way of example with referenceto the accompanying diagrammatic drawings in which:

[0017]FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a gaming machine, in accordancewith an embodiment of the invention;

[0018]FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of a control circuit of the gamingmachine;

[0019]FIG. 3 shows a screen display of a base game forming part of agame played on the gaming machine of FIG. 1;

[0020]FIG. 4 shows a screen display when a composite feature istriggered on the gaming machine of FIG. 1;

[0021]FIGS. 5a to 5 c show a sequence of screen displays of a bonusfeature which is one of the features of the composite feature; and

[0022]FIG. 6 shows a flow chart of the game played on the gaming machinewhen, firstly, the composite feature has been triggered and, secondly,the bonus feature of FIGS. 5a to 5 c has been selected.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] In FIG. 1 of the drawings, reference numeral 10 generallydesignates a gaming machine, including a game, in accordance with theinvention. The machine 10 includes a console 12 having a video displayunit 14 on which a game 16 is played, in use. The game 16 is, preferablybut not necessarily exclusively, a spinning reel game which simulatesthe rotation of a number of spinning reels 18. A midtrim 20 of themachine 10 houses a keypad 22 of buttons for enabling a player to playthe game 16. The midtrim 20 also houses a credit input mechanism 24including a coin input chute 24.1 and a bill collector 24.2.

[0024] The machine 10 includes a top box 26 on which artwork 28 iscarried. The artwork 28 includes paytables, details of bonus awards,etc.

[0025] A coin tray 30 is mounted beneath the console 12 for cash payoutsfrom the machine 10.

[0026] Referring now to FIG. 2 of the drawings, a control means orcontrol circuit 32 is illustrated. A program which implements the gameand user interface is run on a processor 34 of the control circuit 32.The processor 34 forms part of a controller 36 that drives the screen ofthe video display unit 14 and that receives input signals from sensors38. The sensors 38 include sensors associated with the keypad 22 andtouch sensors mounted in the screen of the video display unit 14. Thecontroller 36 also receives input pulses from the mechanism 24 todetermine whether or not a player has provided sufficient credit tocommence playing. The mechanism 24 may, instead of the coin input chute24.1 or the bill collector 24.2, or in addition thereto, be a creditcard reader (not shown) or any other type of validation device.

[0027] Finally, the controller 36 drives a payout mechanism 40 which,for example, may be a coin hopper for feeding coins to the coin tray 30to make a pay out to a player when the player wishes to redeem his orher credit.

[0028]FIG. 3 of the drawings shows a screen display 50 of a base game 52forming part of the game 16 played on the gaming machine 10. The basegame 52 is a spinning reel game comprising a plurality of spinning reels18. The example shown is the Applicant's base game called “GoldenCanaries™”. However, any other base game 52 could be used in the game16. The base game 52, in fact, need not be a spinning reel game andcould, for example, be a card game, a ball-type game, such as Bingo,Keno, or the like.

[0029] The game 16 includes a composite feature called “Lucky Devils”.The composite feature comprises a plurality of unrelated bonus featureswhich are independent of and unrelated to the base game 52. Thecomposite feature, for example, comprises five different bonus features.One of these bonus features is the subject of the present invention andis described in greater detail below with reference to FIGS. 5a-5 c ofthe drawings.

[0030] To be eligible for the composite feature, the player must wageran additional bet. The base game 52 has 20 paylines and, assuming theplayer wagers one bet per line, a total of twenty credits would berequired to play all 20 lines of the base game 52. However, anadditional wager of five credits is wagered by the player as indicatedat 54 on a bet meter on the screen display 50. The wagering of theadditional bet merely gives the player eligibility to participate in thecomposite feature. It does not guarantee that the composite feature willoccur during the playing of the base game 52.

[0031] A decision as to whether or not the composite feature istriggered is made by the controller 36 randomly.

[0032] The determination as to whether or not the composite feature isto be triggered is entirely independent of the base game 52 and also ofthe result of that base game. In other words, no win need appear in thebase game 52 nor need any special symbols occur in the base game 52 forthe composite feature to be triggered. The chances of triggering thecomposite feature are preferably the same regardless of which base game52 is being played.

[0033] Should a determination be made by the controller 36 that thecomposite feature is to be triggered, a special banner 56 (FIG. 4) isdisplayed over the base game 52 after completion of the current basegame 52 in order to alert the player that one of the bonus featuresconstituting the composite feature is about to occur.

[0034] Once again, the controller 36 makes a random determination as towhich bonus feature of the composite feature is to occur.

[0035] Should it be determined that the bonus feature to occur is a“dice feature”, the screen display 50 is replaced by a second screendisplay 60 as shown in FIGS. 5a to 5 c of the drawings. A message (notshown) on the screen of the video display unit 14 instructs a player topress the START FEATURE button of the keypad 22 to commence the feature.

[0036] A character 62 of a devil animates on the screen 60 to shake aplurality of dice 64, preferably three such dice 64, while waiting forthe player to press the START FEATURE button. When the START FEATUREbutton is pressed, three outcomes, one for each die 64, are randomlyselected being numbers in the range from 1 to 6. Instead, each randomselection may be made just prior to the animation for that die 64.

[0037] The character 62 animates to throw a first of the dice 64 whichlands with the first randomly selected number on a visible face 66 ofthe first die 64. This animation is repeated with the remaining dice,one after the other, until the three outcomes are shown on the screen asshown in FIG. 5c of the drawings. The prize awarded to the player is theproduct of the numbers appearing on the visible faces 66 of the dice 64.Accordingly, in the illustrated example, the basic prize is a prize ofsixteen credits.

[0038] However, if the numbers on two of the faces 66 of the dice 64 arethe same then the prize is multiplied by a predetermined multiplier, inthis case the multiple being five. If the numbers on the visible faces66 of all three dice 64 are the same, then the prize awarded ismultiplied by a higher multiplier, for example, a multiplier of ten.

[0039] In addition, the prize awarded is multiplied by the bet made bythe player. In this case, the player has bet one credit per line on 20lines plus the additional five credits to obtain eligibility to thecomposite feature. Therefore, the win for the outcome illustrated inFIG. 5c of the drawings is:

4×4×1×5×20=1600

[0040] which is credited to a win meter 68 displayed on the screendisplay 60. A message 70 is also displayed on the screen display 60 toshow that a double has been “thrown”. Naturally, should a “triple” be“thrown”, the appropriate message 70 would, instead, be displayed on thescreen 60.

[0041] It is to be noted that the dice 64 are thrown one after the otherso that the outcomes appear serially to heighten the sense ofanticipation for the player.

[0042] In the playing of the game 16 on the gaming machine 10, a randomweighted decision is made by the controller 36 as to whether or not thecomposite feature is to occur and, if so, which bonus feature is to beawarded. These determinations are made by the controller 36 such thatthe overall return to player of the gaming machine 10 is substantiallyunchanged in comparison with a gaming machine 10 without the compositefeature.

[0043] It is an advantage of the invention that a bonus feature isprovided which forms part of a composite feature. The composite feature,in turn, enhances a base game which underlies the composite feature. Asa result, the player's enjoyment of the game is enhanced.

[0044] It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art thatnumerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the invention asshown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit orscope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodimentsare, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and notrestrictive.

I claim:
 1. A gaming machine having a display means and a game controlmeans arranged to control images of symbols displayed on the displaymeans, the game control means being arranged to play a game wherein atleast one random event is caused to be displayed on the display meansand, if a predefined winning event occurs, the machine awards a prize,wherein the game includes a bonus feature which, when triggered, resultsin the display of a plurality of devices, each of which animates toreveal a number, a prize awarded being a product of the numbersdisplayed by the devices.
 2. The gaming machine of claim 1 in which thebonus feature forms part of a composite feature.
 3. The gaming machineof claim 2 in which the composite feature and, hence, the opportunity toparticipate in the bonus feature, is automatically triggered.
 4. Thegaming machine of claim 2 in which a player has to wager an additionalamount, over and above a standard game wager, in order to be eligiblefor the composite feature and, hence, the opportunity to participate inthe bonus feature.
 5. The gaming machine of claim 2 in which thecomposite feature is triggered independently of the base game.
 6. Thegaming machine of claim 2 in which the control means makes a randomdetermination as to whether or not the composite feature is to betriggered.
 7. The gaming machine of claim 1 in which, when the bonusfeature is triggered, the base game is replaced by a second screendisplay.
 8. The gaming machine of claim 7 in which, when the bonusfeature is triggered, a character appears in the second screen display.9. The gaming machine of claim 8 in which the devices of the bonusfeature are dice and the character animates to perform a routinesimulating the shaking of a plurality of dice in the character's handfollowed by a simulation of throwing of the dice.
 10. The gaming machineof claim 9 in which, to create a heightened sense of anticipation, thedice are thrown one after the other.
 11. The gaming machine of claim 9in which the prize awarded is the product of the numbers on the visiblefaces of the dice.
 12. The gaming machine of claim 11 in which, if thenumbers on the visible faces of at least two of the dice are the same,the prize awarded is multiplied by a predetermined first multiple. 13.The gaming machine of claim 12 in which, if the numbers on the visiblefaces of all of the dice are the same, the prize awarded is multipliedby a second multiple greater than the first multiple.
 14. The gamingmachine of claim 1 in which the prize awarded is multiplied by a numberof lines bet and a bet per line.
 15. A game to be played on a gameplaying apparatus, the game playing apparatus having a display means anda game control means arranged to control images displayed on the displaymeans, the game including a bonus feature which, when triggered, resultsin the display of a plurality of devices, each of which animates toreveal a number, a prize awarded being a product of the numbersdisplayed by the devices.
 16. The game of claim 15 in which the bonusfeature forms part of a composite, feature.
 17. The game of claim 16 inwhich the composite feature and, hence, the opportunity to participatein the bonus feature, is automatically triggered.
 18. The game of claim16 in which a player has to wager an additional amount, over and above astandard game wager, in order to be eligible for the composite featureand, hence, the opportunity to participate in the bonus feature.
 19. Thegame of claim 16 in which the composite feature is triggeredindependently of the base game.
 20. The game of claim 16 in which thecontrol means makes a random determination as to whether or not thecomposite feature is to be triggered.
 21. The game of claim 15 in which,when the bonus feature is triggered, the base game is replaced by asecond screen display.
 22. The game of claim 21 in which, when the bonusfeature is triggered, a character appears in the second screen display.23. The game of claim 22 in which the devices of the bonus feature aredice and the character animates to perform a routine simulating theshaking of a plurality of dice, in the character's hand followed by asimulation of throwing of the dice.
 24. The game of claim 23 in which,to create a heightened sense of anticipation, the dice are thrown oneafter the other.
 25. The game of claim 23 in which the prize awarded isthe product of the numbers on the visible faces of the dice.
 26. Thegame of claim 25 in which, if the numbers on the visible faces of atleast two of the dice are the same, the prize awarded is multiplied by apredetermined first multiple.
 27. The game of claim 26 in which, if thenumbers on the visible faces of all of the dice are the same, the prizeawarded is multiplied by a second multiple greater than the firstmultiple.
 28. The game of claim 15 in which the prize awarded ismultiplied by a number of lines bet and a bet per line.